A direct result of severely violent actions is often a mass number of casualties. During World War Two, there was no lack in these violent actions and it lead to approximately 46,998 causalities for the Canadian forces. (Rickard) These nearly 47,000 men and women fought for Canada and paid the ultimate sacrifice by giving up their lives. These men and women, along with all the other people that have fought for Canada in years past are true heroes and truly need to be remembered on a constant basis. Without their true sacrifice, Canada could be a completely different country and not be as free as it is today. One man who made this ultimate sacrifice for Canada was Carl Albert Manchur, and he definitely deserves to be remembered.
Carl Albert Manchur was a Polish born Winnipegger. Carl was not a big man, in fact, he was 5`6 and only 128 pounds. He lived in a close family of five. This included, his father Josef, mother Anna, brother Cezimer and sister Mary. (Two Winnipeg Fliers) It appears that Carl may have had a pretty close relationship with his brother Cezimer. There is evidence of many letters being exchanged between the two. (Records and Collections) Growing up, Carl was actively involved in sports. Carl's favorite sport was hockey but he also played rugby, football, baseball and he swam.(Two Winnipeg Fliers) This athletic ability as it seems may have contributed to his light stature as it is likely that he was in good shape. Throughout his life, it does not appear that Carl had any steady relationships with a female. This could just simply be due to the fact that his relationships may not have lasted a long time, not that he was bad with the ladies.During Carl's childhood and young adulthood, Carl had an active faith in which he practiced a lot. Carl was an active member of the Holy Ghost
Church, and within this church, he was a member of the White Eagle club and along with that was also the secretary of the altar boys. Growing up Carl attended Holy Ghost School as a kid. After graduating from Holy Ghost, Carl attended St. Paul`s College and graduated from St. Paul's in 1940. (Two Winnipeg Fliers)
After Carl`s graduation in grade twelve, he joined the air force. This happened in November of 1940.(Two Winnipeg Fliers) Carl trained as a front gunner during his many years of preparation. A front gunner is the man on the aircraft who is in charge of all of the weaponry. This can include various weapons, such as turrets and mounted machine guns.(Rickard) The use of a front gunner in modern day society is no longer needed as all of the front gunner's duties can be covered by machines. Carl's training took place in many schools all throughout Canada. For most of his time, he trained in schools in Winnipeg, Calgary and Dauphin. In Dauphin he completed his training and received his W.A.G. wings.
Earning his wireless air gunner wings, allowed Carl to became a front gunner in the Royal Canadian Air Force and he became a strong member of the twelfth squadron. (Two Winnipeg Fliers) The twelfth squadron was very important throughout the war. This squadron began as part of the Advanced Air Striking Force. This made them one of the very first squadrons to be sent to France for war purposes. Many battles were fought in France, including The Fairey Battle during The Battle of France. While in this battle, the twelfth squadron suffered heavy losses and lost their entire strength of aircraft. After this, the twelfth squadron became a part of the main bomber force of Bomber Command. This meant that they focused their strikes on the nightly offensive against Germany. These nightly attacks were extremely important in the war and took extreme skill to carry out. Members of this squadron had to be stealthy and smart to succeed in the nightly offensives against Germany. During the first two years of war, the aircraft the twelfth squadron was operating was the RAF Wellington. In September 1942 the twelfth squadron moved to the RAF Wickenby, which then converted to the Avro Lancaster. (Rickard)
While being a part of the twelfth squadron, Carl acted as the front gunner on a Wellington Mk 2. The idea to make the Wellington Mk 2 was first proposed in January of 1938. The Wellington Mk in general was just a bombing aircraft but key improvements were made an were established on the Wellington Mk 2. The biggest and most key improvement was the addition of a new and more powerful engine. The engine implemented on the Wellington Mk 2 was the Rolls Royce Merlin X engine. Other improvements included that in general the aircraft was faster than previous versions and that it was more durable.(Rickard)
A picture of the Wellington MK 2, the aircraft type that Carl boarded during the war.(Rickard)
Unfortunately after just over two years of service in the air force, aboard the Wellington Mk 2, Carl`s fate turned to the worse and he passed away. Carl died on July 29th 1942 at the age 21. The worst part about this was that he did not die from an enemy’s attack, he died based on a crash because a malfunction. While preparing to go on an offensive against Germany, the Wellington Mk 2 had a huge problem. Almost immediately after takeoff, 100 feet in the air, the engines over heated and the bombing mission took a turn for the worst and the aircraft crashed, killing all five members on board. (Records and Collections) This is an awful thing to happen but these men including Carl made a huge risk taking on the mission and made a huge sacrifice for Canada to try and attempt to carry it out. Carl, along with his bomber crew were buried in St. Mary`s Churchyard, Binbrook, in Lincolnshire.(Commonwealth War Graves Commission) Back at home in Winnipeg the news of Carl`s death was a huge tragedy to many. Eventually there was a memorial service held in his honor at his old church, Holy Ghost Church.(Memorial Mass) Lest not forget Carl Albert Manchur, a great human being who should be remembered as a Canadian hero.
My Personal Opinion on Carl Albert Manchur:
Of course I see Carl as a Canadian hero for serving in the war, but he really was a complex person. Carl must have been extremely hard working and very dedicated. Never once in my research did I come upon a negative about Carl's life. I instead only found things that showed his hard working and dedicated nature. These are things that seem simple but are quite a feature at the time of Carl's life. Carl was athletic. He didn't just strive at one sport he, played and competed in five. His religious aspect of his life seemed important. Carl must have taken it very serious as he was involved in many things at Holy Ghost Church (choir, white eagles club and lead altar boy). Carl's education must have been important as well. Although there was not to much information on this aspect of his life, he did graduate. Many kids did not do this and this shows a dedication to bettering himself. Carl also seemed to be a loving person. There are many records of deep and heart warming letters exchanged between Carl and his family members. I truly see Carl as a nice and well respected man that should be remebered for both his great qualities and his sacrifice for the sake of Canada.
Key event during Carl's death: Carl died July 29th, 1942. In Germany, whom Canada was battling with throughout the war, many developments were going on at this time. The one that closest relates to Carl is the development of a new aircraft. A prototype was developed during this period. On July 18th 1942, the Messerschmitt 262 became operational. This was a huge development because, it was the first operational jet fighter to take wing. In later years this jet would develop further and become a prominent aircraft for the war. (Long) The Messerschmitt 262 (Long)
Canada. Royal Canadian Air Force. Service Record of Manchur, Carl Albert. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.
This source was very helpful. I learned all of my general information at first from his military records. It has things like his rank, height and weight. It in here also had a death certificate explaining his death.
"Casuality List." The Winnipeg Tribune 7 Aug. 1942: 3. Print.
This article shows the 336th causality list for the RCAF. It is important because it is an official record of Carl’s death. This article will also be used to show some of the other soldiers that were killed on the same day.
"Commonwealth War Graves Commission." http://www.cwgc.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 30
This source was particularly helpful. It not only provided some general information on Carl, it provided information about his grave. The biggest thing here was that this site provided a link to a website where you can find more information on the cemetery he was buried in. A picture of the cemetery can also be found at this site.
Leah, Vince. "Crusaders Lose Four Grid Stars." The Winnipeg Tribune 23 Sept.
1939: 25. Print.
Although this article is not directly about Carl, it talks about how some of his classmates were killed. This article also says that Carl was a talented lineman on the football team for the crusaders. It was helpful in showing some of Carl’s pastimes.
"Memorial Mass Held Sunday For Sargent Manchur." The Winnipeg Tribune 10 Aug.
1942: 3. Print.
This article is important because it shows that Carl was a well-liked guy. Many people were in attendance to his funeral. It also proved that his faith was Roman Catholic, Holy Communion was received. His service was held at Holy Ghost Church.
This site was of very minor use for me. I used it to double check all of my information regarding the grave site of Carl Manchur. This site proved to be reliable as it matched many other sites. It also provided another picture of his grave.
This site was very helpful. It had pictures of his gravestone and all the inscriptions on it, a RCAF portrait of him from 1940, A letter to his dad Josef Manchur from the RCAF talking about his death and burial, a letter notifying Carl’s parents of his death, a certificate saying that a lake was named after him, three personal letters to friends and family, a picture of the graves of all the bomber crew members, a report on how the crash occurred with a photo of the plane, a picture of his page on the book of remembrance and information on the cemetery he was buried in. I see this site as being the most useful for me.
Rickard, J. "No. 12 Squadron (RAF): Second World War."
This site told me about the history of the 12th squadron, which Carl was in. It provided the dates they were active. This site was useful because it told me the specific battles they were involved in and I can go into more detail from there. It even went into such details of what weapons they used and what kind of strategies were in place.
"Two Winnipeg Fliers Killed Overseas." The Winnipeg Tribune 7 Aug. 1942: 11.
Print.
This was an article reporting the death of two fliers, one of them being Carl Manchur. This article is very valuable because it give the reader a sense what Carl did in his life. It says his schooling, his sports life, his family life, how he got into the military and talks about his death.
Table of Contents
Royal Canadain Air Force, Sargent R80326 of the 12th Squadron.
Service Personnel Information
View Larger Map
Essay
A direct result of severely violent actions is often a mass number of casualties. During World War Two, there was no lack in these violent actions and it lead to approximately 46,998 causalities for the Canadian forces. (Rickard) These nearly 47,000 men and women fought for Canada and paid the ultimate sacrifice by giving up their lives. These men and women, along with all the other people that have fought for Canada in years past are true heroes and truly need to be remembered on a constant basis. Without their true sacrifice, Canada could be a completely different country and not be as free as it is today. One man who made this ultimate sacrifice for Canada was Carl Albert Manchur, and he definitely deserves to be remembered.Carl Albert Manchur was a Polish born Winnipegger. Carl was not a big man, in fact, he was 5`6 and only 128 pounds. He lived in a close family of five. This included, his father Josef, mother Anna, brother Cezimer and sister Mary. (Two Winnipeg Fliers) It appears that Carl may have had a pretty close relationship with his brother Cezimer. There is evidence of many letters being exchanged between the two. (Records and Collections) Growing up, Carl was actively involved in sports. Carl's favorite sport was hockey but he also played rugby, football, baseball and he swam.(Two Winnipeg Fliers) This athletic ability as it seems may have contributed to his light stature as it is likely that he was in good shape. Throughout his life, it does not appear that Carl had any steady relationships with a female. This could just simply be due to the fact that his relationships may not have lasted a long time, not that he was bad with the ladies.During Carl's childhood and young adulthood, Carl had an active faith in which he practiced a lot. Carl was an active member of the Holy Ghost
After Carl`s graduation in grade twelve, he joined the air force. This happened in November of 1940.(Two Winnipeg Fliers) Carl trained as a front gunner during his many years of preparation. A front gunner is the man on the aircraft who is in charge of all of the weaponry. This can include various weapons, such as turrets and mounted machine guns.(Rickard) The use of a front gunner in modern day society is no longer needed as all of the front gunner's duties can be covered by machines. Carl's training took place in many schools all throughout Canada. For most of his time, he trained in schools in Winnipeg, Calgary and Dauphin. In Dauphin he completed his training and received his W.A.G. wings.
While being a part of the twelfth squadron, Carl acted as the front gunner on a Wellington Mk 2. The idea to make the Wellington Mk 2 was first proposed in January of 1938. The Wellington Mk in general was just a bombing aircraft but key improvements were made an were established on the Wellington Mk 2. The biggest and most key improvement was the addition of a new and more powerful engine. The engine implemented on the Wellington Mk 2 was the Rolls Royce Merlin X engine. Other improvements included that in general the aircraft was faster than previous versions and that it was more du
A picture of the Wellington MK 2, the aircraft type that Carl boarded during the war.(Rickard)
Unfortunately after just over two years of service in the air force, aboard the Wellington Mk 2, Carl`s fate turned to the worse and he passed away. Carl died on July 29th 1942 at the age 21. The worst part about this was that he did not die from an enemy’s attack, he died based on a crash because a malfunction. While preparing to go on an offensive against Germany, the Wellington Mk 2 had a huge problem. Almost immediately after takeoff, 100 feet in the air, the engines over heated and the bombing mission took a turn for the worst and the aircraft crashed, killing all five members on board. (Records and Collections) This is an awful thing to happen but these men including Carl made a huge risk taking on the mission and made a huge sacrifice for Canada to try and attempt to carry it out. Carl, along with his bomber crew were buried in St. Mary`s Churchyard, Binbrook, in Lincolnshire.(Commonwealth War Graves Commission) Back at home in Winnipeg the news of Carl`s death was a huge tragedy to many. Eventually there was a memorial service held in his honor at his old church, Holy Ghost Church.(Memorial Mass)Lest not forget Carl Albert Manchur, a great human being who should be remembered as a Canadian hero.
My Personal Opinion on Carl Albert Manchur:
Of course I see Carl as a Canadian hero for serving in the war, but he really was a complex person. Carl must have been extremely hard working and very dedicated. Never once in my research did I come upon a negative about Carl's life. I instead only found things that showed his hard working and dedicated nature. These are things that seem simple but are quite a feature at the time of Carl's life. Carl was athletic. He didn't just strive at one sport he, played and competed in five. His religious aspect of his life seemed important. Carl must have taken it very serious as he was involved in many things at Holy Ghost Church (choir, white eagles club and lead altar boy). Carl's education must have been important as well. Although there was not to much information on this aspect of his life, he did graduate. Many kids did not do this and this shows a dedication to bettering himself. Carl also seemed to be a loving person. There are many records of deep and heart warming letters exchanged between Carl and his family members. I truly see Carl as a nice and well respected man that should be remebered for both his great qualities and his sacrifice for the sake of Canada.Key event during Carl's death:
Carl died July 29th, 1942. In Germany, whom Canada was battling with throughout the war, many developments were going on at this time. The one that closest relates to Carl is the development of a new aircraft. A prototype was developed during this period. On July 18th 1942, the Messerschmitt 262 became operational. This was a huge development because, it was the first operational jet fighter to take wing. In later years this jet would develop further and become a prominent aircraft for the war. (Long)
The Messerschmitt 262 (Long)
Military Service Record
This is Binbrook Churchyard
Additional information/links
http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/collections/virtualmem/photoview/2416759/90351
This link shows a huge achievement of Carl's he was named a lake in his honor.
http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/collections/virtualmem/photoview/2416759/90433
http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/collections/virtualmem/photoview/2416759/90434
These two links above show two personal letters between Carl and family members and are very interesting to read his personal thoughts.
Short video showing the Wellington bomber as it appears in the Cliffs of Dover IL-2 flight simulator.
The military records of Carl Albert Manchur
Works Cited
Canada. Royal Canadian Air Force. Service Record of Manchur, Carl Albert. N.p.:
n.p., n.d. Print.
This source was very helpful. I learned all of my general information at first from his military records. It has things like his rank, height and weight. It in here also had a death certificate explaining his death.
"Casuality List." The Winnipeg Tribune 7 Aug. 1942: 3. Print.
This article shows the 336th causality list for the RCAF. It is important because it is an official record of Carl’s death. This article will also be used to show some of the other soldiers that were killed on the same day.
"Commonwealth War Graves Commission." http://www.cwgc.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 30
Apr. 2012. <http://www.cwgc.org/search-for-war-dead/casualty/2416759/
MANCHUR,%20CARL%20ALBERT>
This source was particularly helpful. It not only provided some general information on Carl, it provided information about his grave. The biggest thing here was that this site provided a link to a website where you can find more information on the cemetery he was buried in. A picture of the cemetery can also be found at this site.
Leah, Vince. "Crusaders Lose Four Grid Stars." The Winnipeg Tribune 23 Sept.
1939: 25. Print.
Although this article is not directly about Carl, it talks about how some of his classmates were killed. This article also says that Carl was a talented lineman on the football team for the crusaders. It was helpful in showing some of Carl’s pastimes.
Long, Tony. "July 18, 1942: World's First Operational Jet Fighter Takes Wing."
www.Wired.com
. N.p., 18 July 2007. Web. 18 May 2012.
<http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2007/07/dayintech_0718>.
From this site I was able to find out some big news about world events during Carl's death.
"Memorial Mass Held Sunday For Sargent Manchur." The Winnipeg Tribune 10 Aug.
1942: 3. Print.
This article is important because it shows that Carl was a well-liked guy. Many people were in attendance to his funeral. It also proved that his faith was Roman Catholic, Holy Communion was received. His service was held at Holy Ghost Church.
Peck, Mike. "Manchur, Carl Albert." http://twgpp.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr.
2012. <http://twgpp.org/information.php?id=1389222>.
This site was of very minor use for me. I used it to double check all of my information regarding the grave site of Carl Manchur. This site proved to be reliable as it matched many other sites. It also provided another picture of his grave.
"Records and Collections." http://www.Veterans.gc.ca. N.p., 12 Oct. 2011. Web.
29 Apr. 2012. <http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/collections/virtualmem/
Detail/2416759>.
This site was very helpful. It had pictures of his gravestone and all the inscriptions on it, a RCAF portrait of him from 1940, A letter to his dad Josef Manchur from the RCAF talking about his death and burial, a letter notifying Carl’s parents of his death, a certificate saying that a lake was named after him, three personal letters to friends and family, a picture of the graves of all the bomber crew members, a report on how the crash occurred with a photo of the plane, a picture of his page on the book of remembrance and information on the cemetery he was buried in. I see this site as being the most useful for me.
Rickard, J. "No. 12 Squadron (RAF): Second World War."
http://www.historyofwar.org. N.p., 2 May 2007. Web. 30 Apr. 2012.
<http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/12_wwII.html>.
This site told me about the history of the 12th squadron, which Carl was in. It provided the dates they were active. This site was useful because it told me the specific battles they were involved in and I can go into more detail from there. It even went into such details of what weapons they used and what kind of strategies were in place.
"Two Winnipeg Fliers Killed Overseas." The Winnipeg Tribune 7 Aug. 1942: 11.
Print.
This was an article reporting the death of two fliers, one of them being Carl Manchur. This article is very valuable because it give the reader a sense what Carl did in his life. It says his schooling, his sports life, his family life, how he got into the military and talks about his death.